How can an EB-5 investor file for follow-to-join for a newborn?

Our I-526 petition was approved and my husband and kids attended the consular interview in China. They passed the interview and will be granted an immigrant visa. I did not attend the interview with them as I was expecting a baby at that time. My baby has now been born and my interview is re-scheduled to March 2015. Due to some reasons, we do not want to include the newborn in our immigrant visa petition. Can we file for follow-to-join for the newborn later? Is there any time limitation for filing for the newborn? What are the procedures and how much does it cost?

Answers

The follow-to-join request can be filed anytime before the principal applicant becomes a U.S. citizen. There might be other ways for your newborn to gain a green card. It is not through the follow-to-join approach. You should seek legal advice for personalized solution.

John J Downey

Immigration Attorney

Answered onFebruary 17, 2015

The best course of action is to check with the consulate in China. They will inform you regarding their procedures.

In order to answer your question your experienced EB-5 immigration attorney will need more facts from you as to why you do not want your child to be included as a conditional permanent resident. The child can be included at a later date, but no later than the filing of the I-829 petition.

Normally, the following-to-join is done in about six months to a year, but there is no real deadline to it. You must show that the child is yours and then file the I-824 application for the child when you are ready and then after its approval, follow the instructions for the consulate processing of the immigrant visa application for that child. The cost for this should be similar to the immigrant visa application for the other members of your family. You should check with the immigration lawyer with whom you worked and I am sure they would add the child's application at a discounted rate as they have already done your other family members' cases.

You could have the child follow to join within six months of issuance of the visa. The risk is that if it does not go through smoothly the child may not be able to follow to join and may need to wait a very long time to join the family.

You can immigrant visa process the baby for following to join later, or if the child is under two years of age and is entering with you, the mother, on her first reentry into the United States since the birth of the child, then the child can be processed as an immigrant at the port of entry. There is no time limit for following to join; you might have to file Form I-824 if it is later than one year since your immigrant visa was issued. Check with the U.S. consulate for their local procedures.

Yes you can file a following to join, but you have to decide whether to disclose the child. If you do, the consulate in GZ will want an explanation, and they sometimes ask for waivers for those who do not immigrate, barring future options.

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